The present invention relates to a system for examining a cardiac function suitable for medical examination, and in particular suitable for examining, diagnosing, and monitoring heart pumping (cardiac function).
The human heart, which is responsible for pumping blood throughout the whole body, is one of the most important organs a subject. In recent years, in preventing and curing cardiac diseases, it has been necessary to make an overall evaluation of the pumping function of the heart (hereinafter referred to as cardiac function).
Overall evaluation of cardiac function is made based on intercardiac pressure, cardiac volume, ejection discharge, and a quantity which represents the time change thereof. Hitherto, several methods have been attempted to obtain the individual parameters thereof. However, an overall evaluation of cardiac function can only be made using examination data collected by employing appropriate modalities to analyze the individual parameters mentioned above, artificially studying the results of the analysis, and then making a diagnosis of the study.
In conventional cardiac function examinations, a modality which places a burden (or invasive) on the patient has been frequently used to gather examination data. As a result of this, the patient experiences a feeling of uncertainty and serious mental problems, so that he cannot readily go through the examination. In the same way, the examiner also is seriously burdened because he must be extremely careful not to put stress on the patient during examination and careful in operating the system.
In making an overall evaluation of cardiac function, a large number of parameters have to be individually analyzed. A portion of them can certainly be automatically analyzed, but it takes a long time and a lot of trouble to obtain all of the parameters. In particular, this tendency is stronger when a plurality of modalities is used. In addition, many people are required to carried out the individual parameter analysis. Further, the results of analysis are not necessarily in a suitable form for the overall evaluation of cardiac function, so that a long period of time is required to make the overall evaluation.